French Civil Code
In forcePrior to the celebration of the marriage, the civil registrar will make a publication by means of a poster affixed to the door of the common house. This publication will state the forenames, surnames, occupations, domiciles and residences of the future spouses, as well as the place where the marriage is to be celebrated.
The publication provided for in the first paragraph or, in the event of dispensation from publication granted in accordance with the provisions of Article 169, the celebration of the marriage is subject:
1° To the submission, for each of the future spouses, of the following particulars or documents:
the documents required by Articles 70 or 71 ;
-proof of identity by means of a document issued by a public authority;
-indication of the forenames, surnames, date and place of birth, profession and domicile of the witnesses, except where the marriage is to be celebrated by a foreign authority ;
- where applicable, proof that the person in charge of the protective measure provided for in article 460 has been informed;
2° A joint hearing of the future spouses, unless this is impossible or it appears from the documents provided that such a hearing is not necessary under articles 146 et 180.
The hearing of the future spouse who is a minor takes place without the presence of his or her father and mother or legal representative and future spouse.
The civil registrar asks to speak individually with each of the future spouses when he has reason to fear, in view of the documents provided by them, the elements gathered during their joint hearing or the external detailed elements received, provided they are not anonymous, that the intended marriage is likely to be annulled under the same Articles 146 or 180.
The civil registrar may delegate one or more permanent civil servants from the commune's civil registry department to conduct the joint hearing or individual interviews. Where one of the future spouses resides abroad, the civil registrar may ask the territorially competent diplomatic or consular authority to conduct the interview.
The diplomatic or consular authority may delegate the joint interview or the individual interviews to one or more permanent civil registrars or, where applicable, to civil registrars heading a detached chancery or to competent honorary consuls of French nationality. Where one of the future spouses resides in a country other than that of the celebration, the diplomatic or consular authority may ask the territorially competent civil registrar to conduct his or her interview.
A civil registrar who fails to comply with the prescriptions of the preceding paragraphs will be prosecuted before the judicial court and punished by a fine of 3 to 30 euros.
